Engineer, author and building contractor Mat Stein discussed preparing for social collapse, environmental catastrophes and inevitable disasters. He detailed six key areas where current trends suggest impending disaster for the planet: oil depletion, climate change, collapse of the world's oceans, deforestation, food shortages, and overpopulation. Taken individually, each of these are serious issues, Stein said, but since they are happening simultaneously and exacerbating each other, the cumulative result could be even more catastrophic. Ultimately, he warned that "if human beings don't start controlling their consumption and controlling their growth patterns, then nature will do it for us" via famines and plagues.
Expressing hope that the human race could find a way to reverse these trends, Stein joked that "I call myself 'the optimistic doomer.'" That said, he declared that changing the outlook for the planet would require global cooperation in the face of these impending tipping points. To that end, he appealed to corporations to "make sustainability like the God of the marketplace" rather than merely maximizing profits with no regard for the negative effects on the environment and populace. Chillingly, he mused that, by the time the human race decides to make a serious effort to address these troubling trends, it may be too late and "we're gonna go over that cliff, no matter what we do." Despite the potential futility of such an effort, Stein stressed that it's "a good fight that's worth doing" for the betterment of future generations.
Biography:
Matthew Stein holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from MIT. He is an engineer, author and building contractor. He has also worked as a schoolteacher, carpenter, and rock climbing and ski instructor. As the owner of Aloha Aina Builders, Stein built hurricane resistant, energy efficient and environmentally friendly homes. As a mechanical engineer and president of Stein Design, he has designed consumer water filtration devices, commercial water filtration systems, photovoltaic roofing panels, medical bacteriological filters, drinking fountains, emergency chemical drench systems, computer disk drives, portable fiberglass buildings and automated assembly machinery for Open Energy, Hewlett Packard, Seagate, Plantronics, Duraflame, Haws, and IGT, among other companies.
Wikipedia
Survivalism is a movement of individuals or groups (called survivalists or preppers) who are actively preparing for emergencies as well as possible disruptions in social or political order, on scales ranging from local to international. Survivalists often have emergency medical and self-defence training, stockpile food and water, prepare for self-sufficiency, and build structures that will help them survive or "disappear" (e.g. a survival retreat or underground shelter).
Anticipated disruptions include the following: Clusters of natural disasters, patterns of apocalyptic planetary crises, or Earth Changes (tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, blizzards, solar storms, severe thunderstorms). A disaster caused by the activities of humankind (chemical spills, release of radioactive materials, nuclear or conventional war, oppressive governments). The general collapse of society caused by the shortage or unavailability of resources such as electricity, fuel, food, or water. Financial disruption or economic collapse (caused by monetary manipulation, hyperinflation, deflation, or depression). A global pandemic. Widespread chaos or some other unexplained apocalyptic event.
Mainstream emergency preparations
People who are not part of survivalist groups or apolitically oriented religious groups also make preparations for emergencies. This can include (depending on the location) preparing for earthquakes, floods, power outages, blizzards, avalanches, wildfires, terrorist attacks, nuclear power plant accidents, hazardous material spills, tornadoes, and hurricanes. These preparations can be as simple as following Red Cross and U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) recommendations by keeping a first aid kit, shovel, and extra clothes in the car, or by maintaining a small kit of emergency supplies, containing emergency food, water, a space blanket, and other essentials.
Mainstream economist and financial adviser Barton Biggs is a proponent of preparedness. In his 2008 book Wealth, War and Wisdom, Biggs has a gloomy outlook for the economic future, and suggests that investors take survivalist measures.
